| Year | What He Did | What He Wrote |
| 1756 | Born January 27 in Salzburg. | |
| 1759 | Plays chords on clavier. | |
| 1760 | Starts lessons with father. | |
| 1761 | Composes little pieces. | |
| 1762 | First appearance as "child prodigy" in Munich and Vienna, he and sister taken by father. | K. 1 - 5, four minuets and an allegro |
| 1763 | Concert tour of Germany, Low Countries, and France with father and sister. | K. 6 - 8, first piences for violin, which he was able to play himself |
| 1764 | Tour continues to London, where he meets J.C. Bach and plays for King George III | First symphonies, K. 16 and 19 |
| 1765 | Return to the Continent via The hague, where he and Nannerl fall ill. | Symphony 22 |
| 1766 | Returned to Salzburg at year's end. | works for piano and violin; first commissions and patrons |
| 1767 | He and sister mostly ill with smallpox. | First piano concertos; Latin comedy Apollo and Hyacinthus |
| 1768 | Trips to Vienna, where he received by Maria Theresa. | La finta semplice and Bastien and Bastienne |
| 1769 | Begins trip to Italy with father. | Early masses and symphonies |
| 1770 | Entire year in Italy. | First string quartet (K. 80); Mitridate |
| 1771 | Returns to Salzburg for three months, leaves again to Italy for a six-month stay. | Ascanio in Alba |
| 1772 | Back in Salzburg, future foe Hieronymus von Colloredo becomes archbishop. Third trip to Italy in the fall. | Il Sogno di Scipone, Lucio Silla, many other works |
| 1773 | Attempts unsuccesfully to get a court appointment from Maria Theresa. | string qaurtets, divertimenti, motet "Exsultate, jubilate" |
| 1774 | At home until trip to Munich in December. | Mass in F (K. 192); Symphonies K. 199-202; La finta giariniera |
| 1775 | Most of the year in Salzburg. | Il Re pastore; five violin concertos |
| 1776 | At home; deteriorating relations with Colloredo. | many compositions; Serenate notturna; Haffner Serenade (K. 250) |
| 1777 | Leaves for Paris with mother; falls in love with 16 year-old Aloysia Weber on stopover in Mannheim. | Piano Concerto No. 9 in E-flat (K. 271) |
| 1778 | Heads for Paris, where his mother sickens and dies. Visits Aloysia en route home to Salzburg; she rejects him. | Sinfonia Concertante for Winds; Concerto for Flute and Harp; ballet Les Petits Riens; Paris Symphony (No. 31 in D, K. 297) |
| 1779 | Back to Salzburg; takes job as Colloredo's court organist. | Sinfonia Concertante for Violin and Viola |
| 1780 | Goes to Munich at end of the year to prepare for Idomoneo.Works with Emanuel Schikaneder, later to be the librettist of The Magic Flute. | Idomoneo; Mass in C (K. 317) |
| 1781 | Resigns from Archbishop's service and heads to Vienna. Becomes engaged to Constanze Weber. Has contest with Clementi. Meets Haydn. | Oboe quartet (K. 370); The Abduction from the Seraglio |
| 1782 | Gives first big Vienna concert. Marries Constanze. Abduction huge success in and out of Vienna. | Haffner Symphony (K. 385); Wind Serenade (K. 388); Piano Conertos (K. 413-415); String Quartet No. 14 (K. 387) |
| 1783 | First son is born and dies. Wolfgang brings Constanze to Salzburg to meet his father and sister; no rapport is established. | Unfinished Mass in C minor (K. 427); Linz Symphony (No. 36, K. 425) |
| 1784 | Son Karl Thomas born. Joins the Freemasons. | Many piano concertos; Serenade for Thirteen Wind Instruments (K. 361); Quintet for Piano and Winds (K. 452) |
| 1785 | Admired by Haydn as the greatest composer who ever lived. | completes Haydn quartets; more piano concertos; begins Marriage of Figaro |
| 1786 | Figaro produced in Vienna, but dropped after nine performaces. Third son is born and dies. | Prague Symphony in D (No. 38, K. 504); Piano Concerto in C (K. 503) |
| 1787 | Goes to Prague, commissioned to write Don Giovanni, which was well-received there. Meets Beethoven. Leopold Mozart dies on May 28 at the age of 67. Wolfgang is appointed to a minor post as court chamber composer. A daughter is born, but dies six months later. | C major and G minor string quartets (K. 515 and 516); Eine kleine Nachtmusik; Don Giovanni |
| 1788 | Don Giovanni a flop in Vienna. Mozart writes his three greatest symphonies. | Symphonies Nos. 39 in E-flat (K. 543); 40 in G minor (K. 550); No. 41 (Jupiter) in C (K. 551) |
| 1789 | Travels to Berlin. Falls heavily into debt and begins borrowing. Another daughter is born and dies. | Clarinet Quintet (K. 581); King of Prussia Quartet (K. 575) |
| 1790 | Debts continue to pile up. Cosi fan tutte drops out of sight after ten performances. Suffers increasing bouts of poor health. | Cosi fan tutte; string quartets K. 589 and 590; Coronation Piano Concerto, K. 537 |
| 1791 | Commissioned to write the Requiem by a stranger, but must put it aside to write an opera for the coronation of Leopold II and The Magic Flute for Schikaneder. Franz Xaver Wolfgang born. Mozart dies on December 5. | Piano Conerto No. 27 in B-flat (K. 595); "Ave, verum corpus"; La Clemenza di Tito; The Magic Flute; Requiem Mass. |